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General George S. Patton: The Battle Of The Bulge

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General George S. Patton was a critical thinker that exercised all of his staff elements to help visualize the battlefield and develop a plan. Army Doctrine Publication (ADP) 5-0 covers the operations process and the principles of operations. While this doctrine is based off of the Field Manual 100-5 which was introduced in 1993, the operations processes and the principles outlined in it have always been in line with Army thinking. The terminology has shifted over the years but no matter how it is described we can use many of these terms to highlight Patton’s genius on the battlefield. Leading up to and during the Battle of the Bulge and specifically the Battle of Bastogne General Patton used his vast knowledge of history and his entire staff to plan the mission and make informed decisions. …show more content…
If we take a hard look at the principles of the operations process we can really start to get a better understanding of just how successful Patton was at driving that process. ADP 5-0 discusses how staffs perform essential functions that amplify the effectiveness of operations, commanders drive the operations process through understanding, visualizing, describing, directing, leading, and assessing operations. (ADP, 2012)

General Patton and his staff had been working together for quite some time before the Battle of the Bulge began. Many of the primary staff officers had served on Patton's Seventh Army staff in Sicily. This familiarity helped them come together as a team much more rapidly. Due to the fact that they had all worked together previously they had already developed a deep level of trust and all were intensely loyal to Patton. General Patton expected the officers to be upfront and frank with him so that he could have all of the information prior to making a decision. (Sanderson,

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